Hello Dave,

I read all the thread and hope not to miss the informations but :
- what the width of the basebar (38cm center to center ?)
- what is the closest gap possible between the armpads ?

The base bar is 42cm wide.


The arm pads can be set up narrow enough to touch or 0mm gap.

-Dave

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https://www.kickstarter.com/...bike-for-the-new-era

I am planning on ordering from my LBS Bloomington Cycle and Fitness in Bloomington, IL. If I order now, they said ETA should be March.

Many thanks for the sharp reply !

dave, there is no water bladder in the IA FRD like the shiv from what I have read. But others say there is. who is right

I thought that that would be the case. Unfortunately as a college freshman, I do not anticipate being in the market for a new tri bike anytime soon. But used IA's might be hitting the market around the time I graduate and get a job...

Do you know what is the idea in mind by making it so large vs 3T Aduro or Easton Attack 2007 both around 38cm wide ?

We followed the most commonly sold, used, and preferred size. It is possible that other sizes could be created in the future or an adapter that allows any base bar to be installed (like Rinny's proto) but today the 42cm base bar is what will ship. Again, by ignoring UCI rules we can reduce the frontal area vs. those UCI legal bars you've mentioned.

-SD

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https://www.kickstarter.com/...bike-for-the-new-era

Thanks Dave. The possibilty of an adapter for selfchoiced bars would make the difference for me !!! Hope it gonna happen !

Ok, but be advised, the change to a narrower UCI legal bar and a non-integrated stem will make the bike less aerodynamic.
-SD

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https://www.kickstarter.com/...bike-for-the-new-era

I think that's a bit self-fulfilling in that it's often very hard to buy anything narrower. I always buy the narrowest I can get within the rules, but that often ends up being 40/42. I have used 36cm drop handlebars and prefer them in every way - less frontal area of the bars compared to wider, less frontal area of my arms, and after a short adaptation period to get used to them, much better for climbing due to the reduced leverage so you can apply more force pulling against the bars with less disruptive effect on the bike than with wider bars / more leverage. I've found that adaptation hasn't worked the other way round, in that I still hate 42cm bars for climbing now that I've used 36cm, even though I haven't used the 36cm for well over a year, i.e. there seems to be something that is simply inherently better about the narrower bars / less leverage.

There are plenty of base bars available in different widths. When surveying the manufacturers on the most common size, the results were 42cm.
We could have made the IA bars whatever width we wanted, why do you think we ended up with 42cm?

-Dave

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https://www.kickstarter.com/...bike-for-the-new-era

I'm just saying data on what people buy is biased by what is available. If you were to conduct your survey based on my own purchases over the last few years you would have reached the same conclusion yet I hate 42cm bars. E.g. I am planning to buy your own Devox bars, and I assume the 42cm UCI illegal version is faster than the 39cm UCI legal version, so will again be going for the 42cm option despite hating that width. Or if we consider wheel size, my purchasing says I prefer 700c yet I would love to buy a 650c bike so I don't need a downsloping stem to get low, but I haven't because I expect I would lose more due to reduced tyre choice than I would gain from the smaller frame. So again, you can survey what I purchase but it won't tell you my preference.

Why does this DrinkPac question continually get shoved aside? I already put a deposit on the first 54 that shows up and we really know very little about this bike until it shows up.

Any insight? It's pretty damn vague in all the Felt literature.

I too find it curious...I'm sure it is because felt isn't finalized about if there is internal bladder and/ or storage. You would think a company would specify the IA is a concept bike with info on the final product to come. They released info way too soon to get a jump on inter bike and the like. What has followed has been a comedy as people want info on the bike so they can decide if they want to order but felt has been mysterious about certain aspects of the frame. The easiest thing to do at this time would be to address the bladder issue straight forward as possible...yes or no or maybe. Dave is In a Tough spot as he can only say what felt tells him.

I'm surprised there is confusion, the answer to that question has already been answered by a dozen of my forum post replies. There will be internal storage a la bento box behind the stem inside the top/downtube. I'm not in a tough spot. I'm responsible for bringing the bikes to market, I know exactly how they'll be equipped.

-Dave

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https://www.kickstarter.com/...bike-for-the-new-era

Once again thought the internal bladder or drink pack question is avoided. Will there be an internal bladder and if not why was there one listed as a feature initially? Thanks for the info Dave.

I recall answering this before. August 10th, 17th, 18th, 20th...etc.

Here's an except of one of my replies on this forum:

"The available accessories will be part of ongoing developments released as soon as they are able. The hydration systems like the Trek TTT, Canyon Project 0.05, Culprit Legend, and Rafael have their merits. A monitor allowing continual head-down posture would also be a great add-on especially with a range-finder like the fishing and golf industry have."

The bike delivered in 2014 will include the internal "bento box" storage as I detailed in the introduction of Josh and Rinny's bike. A couple salt tabs and a 1/2 dozen gels is how it was used during the IMWC ride. In the future we could have additional accessories occupy this area. Integration is going to be the hallmark of this bike.

I don't think an internal bladder was featured during the public launch of the IA unless the message I quoted above was misunderstood. Same with the BTA mount, Vibration Reducing 3T Difflock saddle clamp mechanism, and non-proprietary stems. Some of the prototypes that are on the road today feature technologies that don't appear on production bicycles just yet. The IA is a platform that will evolve over the next few model years as some of the concepts take production form.

-SD

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https://www.kickstarter.com/...bike-for-the-new-era

Hi Dave,
I've ordered a 51 already so excited to get the bike when it's available!

I do have some questions I'm curious about. The technical specs mention hydration in relation to the cal pac, so it does seem a little confusing. What is the "on-the fly hydration" in the technical paper referring to?

From Felts Paper:
___________________________
AeroPac Cover

The storage reservoir integrated into the IA
top tube features a silicone cover to securely
contain nutrition and hydration as well as
retain aerodynamics by blending into the
surface of the frame. The cover allows on the-
fly hydration and easy access to stored
goods.
_____________________________
Also, in the test results it's show the IA with a 1:27 advantage over a P5 over 112 miles. Is this full stock builds on each bike, Frame Only? What was the testing protocol used?


MC

Dang Mark, finally updating to 700s and superbike aero! Glad you moved away!! haha

You saw that on 2014 IA release information or was it in an internal dealer document introducing the IA technology and platform? In the FRD video/site you can see a few prototypes of the accessories and even some work on the DA platform. There are 2016 and 2017 projects floating around here in the office that occasionally see the outside world during testing or perhaps during a media or dealer tour but they aren't meant for public consumption just yet.

"The available accessories will be part of ongoing developments released as soon as they are able. The hydration systems like the Trek TTT, Canyon Project 0.05, Culprit Legend, and Rafael have their merits. A monitor allowing continual head-down posture would also be a great add-on especially with a range-finder like the fishing and golf industry have."


-Dave

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https://www.kickstarter.com/...bike-for-the-new-era

The internal bladder was mentioned in many of the press write ups alas triathlete mag and in the photos of the unveiling witch featured a straw coming out of the top tube like the shiv. All the questions come from the fact felt showed a product with features that May or may not be available. We didn't know the unveiling was a demo bike, not a production bike so don't be surprised if we have questions about details previously reported.

Dave,
The document with that wording is here on the felt website.

http://www.feltbicycles.com/...ocuments/Felt_IA.pdf

thanks,
Mark

Yeah, bet you're glad I'm no longer in North Carolina.

MC